Fair Use
Fair Use according to Copyright.gov is “''a legal doctrine that promotes freedom of expression by permitting the unlicensed use of copyright-protected works in certain circumstances.” (U.S Copyright Office. n.d.) The United States Government defines what is considered fair use in section 107 of the U.S Copyright Act. The Act reads as follows. ''::'107. Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use40''' 'Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted'' work,'' including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by'' any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use'' the factors to be considered shall include— '' (1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes; '' ''(2) the nature of the copyrighted work; '' ''(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and '' ''(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. '' ''The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors. (U.S Copyright Office. n.d.) Criticism is an interesting concept when it comes to what is Fair Use. It is common to hear sections of an autobiography quoted on live television in order to criticize a public official’s opinion and past stances. The use of quotes from the book requires no express permission from the copyright holder to use when criticizing. This includes parody and satire as they are forms of criticism as well. The internationally acclaimed parody artist Weird Al Yankovic isn’t required by the letter of the law to get permission from the copyright holders of the original songs he parodies although he usually does out of good faith morality and respect (Sternburg, 2011). In contrast to Weird Al, there are those like South Park Digital Studios who release parodies and satires without the express permission of the original copyright holders. They too are protected by fair use as shown by the case of Brownmark Films, LLC v. Comedy Partners (2012). South Park Digital Studios were sued over their WWITB parody of the American Writer’s Guild strike. The court ruled in favor of the defendants, in this case, dismissing the case and protecting fair use (Brownmark Films, LLC v. Comedy Partners, 2012) As teachers and librarians, our interest in fair use is more concerned with education. Although section 107 of the Copyright Act makes exceptions in copyright for educational purposes, it does not give instructors the right to completely disregard copyright. Education World presents the following guidelines as suggested by Copyright Attorney Nancy Willard. Those guidelines allow educators, under most circumstances, to copy '' · ''a single chapter from a book '' · ''an excerpt from a work that combines language and illustrations, such as a children's book, not exceeding two pages or 10 percent of the work, whichever is less '' · ''a poem of 250 words or less or up to 250 words of a longer poem '' · ''an article, short story, or essay of 2,500 words or less, or excerpts of up to 1,000 words or 10 percent of a longer work, whichever is less; or '' · ''a single chart, graph, diagram, drawing, cartoon, or picture from a book, periodical, or newspaper. ''(Starr, 2010) What this means is that as educators we can make copies of small portions of copyrighted works that can be used for educational purposes. This may include portions of books, complete poems, or sections of essays. As educators, we may not make complete copies of books and distribute them to our students in order to avoid having to pay the copyright holder. Simply put, if our copies cause significant loss in revenue for the copyright holder, the law is being broken (Starr, 2010). This prohibits the copying of textbooks instead of purchasing a class set. The use of a copied newspaper article used in the classroom to discuss politics and current events would be fair game under section 107 and court precedents. This difference is clear in this regard. At the end of the day if you’re not sure, ask. '''Works Cited' Brownmark Films, LLC v. Comedy Partners, No. 11-2620 (7th Cir. 2012). (2012, June 7). Retrieved June 30, 2019, from https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca7/11-2620/11-2620-2012-06-07.html Starr, L. (2010, May 25). Is Fair Use a License to Steal? Retrieved June 30, 2019, from https://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr280b.shtml Sternburg, A. (2011, August 04). Even Weird Al Gets Permission. Retrieved June 30, 2019, from http://www.ipbrief.net/2011/08/04/even-weird-al-gets-permission/ U.S Copyright Office. (n.d.). Chapter 11: Subject Matter and Scope of Copyright. Retrieved June 30, 2019, from https://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#107 Digital Resources You can find further resources about Fair Use here. Fair Use in the U.S.A. What is Fair Use by Richard Stem Overview of Fair Use in U.S.A. Wikipedia'